Magnus Carlsen got the better of World Champion D Gukesh in their round-1 pairing of the Clutch Chess Champions Showdown event at the Saint Louis Chess Club in Missouri, Monday night. 

Gukesh lost on time in their first Rapid clash shortly after he blundered a rook move, and Carlsen missed the best response that could have sealed him a certain win.

The second Rapid game between the Norwegian and the young Indian ended in a draw, giving the former a 1.5-0.5 win in their double round-robin match. 

Gukesh famously defeated Carlsen in consecutive meetings earlier this year. The first one was Gukesh's maiden classical win over Carlsen in the Norway Chess in June, after which the World No 1 slammed on the table. In their second meeting, a month later, Gukesh defeated Carlsen in a rapid game in the Grand Chess Tour in Zagreb. 

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Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana, who make up the top three after Carlsen, are the other two players in the competition that will run till October 30.

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